Good humour and camaraderie in this unpredictable horror comedy- Cinema express

Carlos Therón’s film dramatises a challenging case of the real-life Hepta Group. Founded in Spain by Father Pilon in the late 1980s, the collective was established to investigate a rise in the incidence of paranormal phenomena in the country. Phenomena manages to hold the attention by bringing a brand of light comedy and banter to its horror tale. The veteran ghost-hunting team of Sagrario (Belén Rueda), Gloria (Toni Acosta) and Paz (Gracia Olayo) complement each other very well, making their often-humorous equation the highlight of the film. At the heart of it, Phenomena is a horror film with traditional elements. What makes it interesting is its casually comedic feel, offsetting the tenseness that lies at the core. The former is accentuated by parts of the musical score. Just when you think that the horror will take over completely, there’s an unexpected joke or a comment that makes its way to the surface. The film has this surprising quality of keeping you guessing throughout. Even after you’re acquainted with the characters and their quirks, you are never in a position to predict which way the story will turn.

Director – Carlos Therón

Cast – Belén Rueda, Toni Acosta, Gracia Olayo, Emilio Gutiérrez Caba, Miren Ibarguren,  

Streaming On – Netflix

Father Pilon’s trusted team of Sagrario, Gloria and Paz bring much experience to the paranormal table. They rule out every bit of natural phenomena before entertaining the possibility of an otherworldly occurrence. Veterans that they are in the field, their usual approach to an investigation is in the form of casual humour. Gloria is the most media savvy of the trio, and is responsible for their popularity in the press. She lost her husband recently and wishes to connect with him in any way she can. Signs of his presence keep making themselves felt in her day-to-day existence. Chain-smoking Gloria is the medium of the group. Never short of a word, is her psychic predisposition only matched by her quick-witted repartees and hilarious dialogues. After all these years of paranormal investigation, she wishes to be away from the limelight and pursue her dream of being a pharmacist. And finally, there’s Paz, the most level-headed member of the three. She is responsible for capturing all the audio and video evidence during an investigation. When their mentor and partner, Father Pilon, gets admitted to hospital in a comatose condition after a near-fatal paranormal encounter, the women take it upon themselves to get to the bottom of things. Armed with their wit, equipment and an eager Physics student in tow (for a balanced, scientific perspective), the Hepta Group ventures to the house where Father Pilon was attacked by a purported entity.

What keeps the engagement alive in this atypical horror flick is the camaraderie shared by the three women. They rib each other every chance they get. This takes place even in the middle of a tense or scary moment, be it a Ouija session invoking a spirit or a thorough combing of a haunted site. The back-and-forth between the members (especially Sagrario and Gloria) lends itself to an authentic, everyday sort of humour…one that can be found amongst the closest of friends. Gloria’s love for cigarettes is another running gag that fits seamlessly into the comedic milieu. After an intense possession scene, she is brought back from the brink by the other two women. And her first request, as she turns to a perturbed Sagrario, is for a cigarette.

The humorous elements of the narrative, including the music, outshine the paranormal aspects of it. Maybe because the laughs land well, it is difficult to take the creepier parts at face value. The initial investigation which involves Hepta and the new owners of the house presents a horror-comedy mixture. The spirit takes a liking to the middle-aged male, possessing him and creating havoc, but much of the paranormal happenings unfold in a funny manner. So, while it is unpredictable in so far as the reactions it wishes to achieve, Phenomena doesn’t demarcate the laugh worthy from the scary adequately enough. The possession scenes that have Gloria in its grip are a departure from the aforementioned norm, though. Those are the only horror sequences in which the sinister is truly felt. And therein lies the confusion. A film such as Bingo Hell balanced its humour and its darkness so well that it scored points in each category without there being a messy spill over  Unfortunately, Phenomena fails to live up to that standard. That being said, the film has an undeniably watchable quality to it. Classic numbers like Jim Croce’s Time in a Bottle (that plays on repeat) and Steve Miller Band’s Abracadabra (playing at the end) add to this inexplicable pull Phenomena has. The strong chemistry between leads Belén Rueda, Toni Acosta and Gracia Olayo ought to be the main reason to watch this atypical film.

–          Mrinal Rajaram